Starship
Troopers
Thought
Questions
Chapter 1
1.
Explain the book’s dedication.
2.
Compare or contrast a Drop with a Jump.
3.
Why does Rico get the shakes before a drop?
4.
How do you feel about expendability in light of the 5th
Stanza of the Ranger Creed?
Chapters 2 & 3
1.
Compare Rico’s father’s opinion of the military with
America’s post-Cold War/post-draft attitudes.
2.
Was the Infantry your last choice? If so, why? If not, what prompted you to choose Infantry?
3.
Do you think Fleet Sergeant Ho’s opinion of the Infantry is
appropriate?
4.
What does it mean to you to be a soldier?
Chapter 4
1.
Do you think the principles and practices of the future boot
camp are valid? Do they apply to Basic
Training today?
2.
How does adversity build a bond in a team (for further
study, read Chapters 1 – 3 of Steven Ambrose’s book, Band of Brothers)?
3.
Should training be so tough that people can die?
Chapters 5 & 6
1.
In your own words, define war as explained by Sergeant Zim.
2.
Should an NCO or Officer be allowed to “lay hands” on a
soldier, during training or war, to correct a deficiency?
3.
What measures were taken to shield Private Hendricks from
himself?
4.
Is Mr. DuBois’ definition of value a true one? If so, give another example of false value
in our society. If not, give your
definition of value and an example of something valued by your definition.
Chapters 7 & 8
1.
With the advent of the tank in WWI and true air power in
WWII, why do you think Infantry remains the most fundamental branch of the
Army, or is it?
2.
Do you think, based upon personnel shortages in the Army,
the draft should be reinstated?
3.
Does the Army bear responsibility for soldiers who are
uncontrollable?
4.
Is “Duty,” as relates to the Infantry, contrary to the
instinct of self-preservation? How do
you rationalize what you do to your mother?
Chapters 9 & 10
1.
Do you notice a difference between yourself and the average
civilian? What is it?
2.
In the Roughnecks, the chain of command/support handled all
problems by maintaining discipline down the chain. How does this compare to our platoon?
3.
What is your opinion of the “Everybody drops, everybody
fights” principle in the Roughnecks?
Chapter 11
1.
Would you take responsibility as a combat leader as readily
as did Rico? Are you able?
2.
Do you belong to the Infantry? Is this your family?
3.
Why do you suppose Lieutenant Jelal refused to change the
name of his Platoon after Lieutenant Rasczak’s death despite the willingness of
his men?
Chapter 12
1.
What do you think of Rico’s Father’s change of heart? Is this consistent with his earlier stance?
2.
How many prisoners of war is enough to consider
renewing hostilities?
3.
Contrast franchise (voting rights) between Heinlein’s world
and ours. Which is better and why?
4.
For extra credit: Colonel Nielssen gives an example of a
third lieutenant who was court-martialed for abandoning his post. Is this a true story, and if so, who was he
and what were the circumstances?
Chapter 13
1.
What is the point of the (obviously engineered) quote at the
beginning of this chapter?
2.
Contrast the difference between an MI Division and its
tooth-to-tail ratio and today’s divisions.
Is this appropriate? If not, how
could we correct it? If so, why do you
believe so?
3.
Why is the “human” arithmetic so different (“TWO DIE SAVING
DROWNING CHILD”)? Why is the rescue of
a few so often worth the lives of more than those are to be rescued?
Chapter 14
1.
Quite often in this book, references or even direct quotes
of religious sources (primarily the Bible) are made. Does religion have any use to an Infantryman? Explain your answer.
2.
Summarize, in your own words, what you have learned, if
anything, from reading this book.
3. Would you
recommend it to anyone else? If so, who
(you may be as general or specific as you wish)?